Explorer Tom's days out

Come for one famous place. Tom will take you to four curious stops nearby, with real photos, the place stories and a map for the whole day.

Aillwee CaveAillwee Cave is the big kahuna of the Burren, lads. You walk into this massive limestone hole and think, 'Whoa, where's the exit?' The name comes from Irish, Aill Bhuí, which translates to…Arthur's SeatArthur's Seat. It’s an ancient extinct volcano, lads, and it’s the main peak of Holyrood Park. Robert Louis Stevenson called it a hill for magnitude, a mountain in virtue of its bold…Ashford CastleAshford Castle. Look, it’s not just a fancy five-star hotel, though it is that. It sits right on the County Galway side of Lough Corrib, which is a proper bit of real estate. The Guinness…Blarney CastleBlarney Castle. It’s not just a pretty face, it’s a fortress with a history thick as a brick. Built in 1446 by the MacCarthy of Muskerry, a cadet branch of the Kings of Desmond, this place…Bunratty CastleBunratty Castle, or Caisleán Bhun Raithe as the locals call it when they are feeling fancy. We are standing in a big 15th-century tower house in County Clare, right by the N18 road between…CarrowmoreCarrowmore is the big cheese of megalithic tombs on the Coolera Peninsula, sitting right there west of Sligo. We’re talking about the fourth millennium BC, lads, so these guys have been…Cliffs of MoherThe Cliffs of Moher are basically the Atlantic Ocean's way of saying 'keep your distance'. Located at the southwestern edge of the Burren in County Clare, these bad boys stretch for about…CobhCobh. It’s not just a town, lads, it’s a legend with a postcode. We’re talking An Cóbh, the place where the Titanic actually stopped for coal and last looks. It was Queenstown for over…Connemara National ParkConnemara National Park. Right, so this is one of the eight national parks in Ireland, which sounds official but mostly means you can’t build a shed without filling out forms for a decade.…Corfe CastleCorfe Castle sits right there, mocking you from the top of a hill in Dorset. It’s a proper fortification, built by William the Conqueror in the 11th century. Back then, most castles were…DalkeyDalkey. It’s not just a pretty suburb, it’s a proper thorn island, which sounds way cooler than it is. Vikings dropped anchor here, turning it into a medieval port that basically invited…DingleDingle. It’s the only town on the Dingle Peninsula, which is a bit of a flex when you consider the view. We sit right on the Atlantic coast, about fifty k southwest of Tralee. The Irish…Dunluce CastleDunluce Castle. Right, so this is the big one. It’s a ruined medieval castle in County Antrim, originally the seat of the powerful Clan MacQuillans. It sits on a basalt outcropping, which…Dún AonghasaDún Aonghasa is the big one, the famous one, the one your nan told you about. It sits on Inis Mór, right at the edge of a 100-metre-high cliff. That is serious height, lads. It is a…ErrigalErrigal. An Earagail, to be precise. It rises 751 metres above Dunlewey, looking like it’s judging your life choices. It’s the tallest peak in County Donegal and the southernmost of the…Gap of DunloeGap of Dunloe. Right, listen up. This is the narrow pass splitting MacGillycuddy's Reeks from the Purple Mountain Group. It’s from the Irish Dún Lóich, meaning Lóich's stronghold. They say…Giant's CausewayGiant’s Causeway. You’re standing on the cool side of the coin here. About forty thousand interlocking basalt columns, all hexagonal, formed by a volcanic fissure eruption in the Paleogene…Glenveagh CastleGlenveagh Castle stands big and brooding in County Donegal. It is a large castellated mansion, built around 1870. That is not a small job, is it. You look at it and think, 'Who had the coin…Grianan of AileachGrianán of Aileach is a hillfort perched on Greenan Mountain, looking down on Inishowen like it owns the place. The main structure is a stone ringfort, rebuilt in the nineteenth century,…Guinness StorehouseGuinness Storehouse. Right, so you’re standing at St. James's Gate, the holy ground of the black stuff. It’s not just a brewery, it’s a seven-floor monument to our national obsession. Since…Hook LighthouseHook Lighthouse. Stand here and you’re looking at eight hundred years of stubborn stone. It’s the second oldest operating lighthouse in the world, right after the Tower of Hercules in…HowthHowth is where the peninsula bites into Dublin Bay with a vengeance. It’s been settled since prehistoric times, so it’s seen some things. The story goes the Vikings called it Hǫfuð, which…Jerpoint AbbeyJerpoint Abbey. Right, so this is the big one. We’re standing in County Kilkenny, looking at a ruined Cistercian abbey that’s been hanging around since the late 1100s. The stone carvings…KellsKells is the big cheese of County Meath, sitting just off the M3, sixteen kilometres from Navan. You’re looking at a town with six thousand six hundred and eight people, per the 2022…Kilmainham GaolKilmainham Gaol. Right, so this place isn't just any old jail. It opened in the late eighteenth century as the County of Dublin Gaol, which sounds fancy, but was basically a nightmare. Now…KinsaleKinsale, lads, it’s the head of the brine, which sounds like a bad hair gel but means we’re right on the coast. Situated south of Cork, this place is basically a giant fish trap with a…Kylemore AbbeyKylemore Abbey. Right, picture this: a castle that became a monastery, then became a legend. It started in 1920 when Benedictine nuns fled Belgium during the First World War, looking for a…Ladies ViewLadies View. Right there on the Ring of Kerry, nineteen klicks from Killarney. Queen Victoria’s ladies-in-waiting loved it in 1861, so we named it after them. Grand, right? The Irish Times…Loch LomondLoch Lomond. Right, so this is the big one. It spans the Highland Boundary Fault, which is basically the line where the hills stop being polite and start being massive. It’s the largest…Mellifont AbbeyMellifont Abbey. The big one. Literally, it’s An Mhainistir Mhór, meaning the Big Monastery. It was the first Cistercian abbey in Ireland, so it’s got seniority. Built in the 12th century,…Mizen HeadMizen Head. Carn Uí Néid to the locals, which sounds fancy but basically means 'Néid's Hill'. It sits right at the end of the Mizen Peninsula in County Cork. Everyone swears it’s the most…MonasterboiceMonasterboice is where the early Christians really went to town, lads. Right in County Louth, north of Drogheda, this monastic settlement was the real deal back in the day. It’s a national…Mount StewartMount Stewart in County Down is where the Stewarts, Marquesses of Londonderry, built this 19th-century masterpiece on the shore of Strangford Lough. It’s owned by the National Trust now,…Muckross HouseMuckross House. So, you’re standing here on Muckross Peninsula, stuck between Muckross Lake and Lough Leane. Two lakes, one house, zero privacy. Very exclusive. In 1932, William Bowers…Old Harry RocksOld Harry Rocks. You’re staring at three massive chalk formations at Handfast Point, right on the Isle of Purbecks. It’s the eastern tip of the Jurassic Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Site,…Poulnabrone dolmenPoulnabrone Dolmen. Yeah, the big one in the Burre. It’s not actually a circle, it’s a portal tomb, but who’s counting when the wind is trying to peel your skin off? Built by Neolithic…Powerscourt EstatePowerscourt is the big cheese of Wicklow, lads. Originally a thirteenth-century castle, it got the royal treatment in the eighteenth century when Richard Cassels, a German with style,…Rosslyn ChapelRosslyn Chapel. It’s the real deal, not the movie set, though it does look like a fantasy book cover had a baby with a stone church. William Sinclair started the job in 1456, which is old…Slieve LeagueSlieve League. Sixty-one metres of Atlantic drama. It’s the second-highest cliff in Ireland, just behind Croaghaun, and honestly, it makes my knees shake. The name means mountain of stone…Spike IslandSpike Island. Right, so it’s 103 acres of pure drama in Cork Harbour. Originally, the monks had it, but the British showed up in the 18th century and built Fort Mitchel. It looks like a…Trinity College DublinTrinity College Dublin. This is the big one, the holy grail of Dublin history. Founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I, it was basically built to keep the Tudors in power. They knocked down…Windsor CastleWindsor Castle. Right, so you’re standing in front of the longest-occupied palace in Europe. William the Conqueror kicked things off in the 11th century, and it’s been a royal hangout ever…

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